ENTIAL  TO  THE  STATE’S  PROSPERITY, 


WITH 


Some  Ideas  upon  Internal  Navigation. 


AN  ADDRESS 


DELIVERED  BEFORE 


HE  BUFFALO  BOARD  OF  TRADE, 


JlRRIL  11,  1878, 


BY 


ALONZO  RICHMOND, 


OF  BUFFALO,  N.  Y. 


BUFFALO,  N.  Y. 

PRINTING  HOUSE  OP  JAMES  D.  WARREN. 

Office  of  the  “ Buffalo  Commercial  Advertiser 


A  FREE  CANAL 


WITH 


Some  Ideas  upon  Internal  Navigation. 


AN  ADDRESS 

DELIVERED  BEFORE 

THE  BUFFALO  BOARD  OF  TRADE, 

APRIL,  11 ,  1878 , 

BY 

ALONZO  RICHMOND, 

OF  BUFFALO,  N.  Y. 


BUFFALO,  N.  Y. 

PRINTING  HOUSE  OF  JAMES  D.  WARREN, 

Office  of  the  “Buffalo  Commercial  Advertiser." 

1878. 


3  KC 

THE  GREAT  WATER  ROUTE. 


Gentlemen  of  the  Board  of  Trade: 

In  recent  notices  the  newspapers  have 
spoken  of  the  great  work  this  Board  of  Trade 
has  done  for  our  city  and  State.  It  was  the 
first  to  advocate  a  repeal  of  the  canal  contract 
system  which  begat  the  most  corrupt  rings 
ever  known  in  the  State.  It  was  the  first  to 
proclaim  the  policy  of  low  tolls,  and  also  to 
declare  the  necessity  for  a  free  canal. 

For  more  than  twenty  years  members  of 
this  Board  have,  again  and  again,  endeavored 
to  arouse  the  attention  of  the  citizens  of  the 
State,  and  especially  of  the  city  of  New- York, 
to  the  necessity  of  reducing  the.  cost  of  trans¬ 
portation  on  the  Erie  Canal,  and  demonstrat¬ 
ed  to  them  that  without  it  the  trade,  then 
passing  through  this  great  thoroughfare, 
would  leave  us  and  find  other  channels. 

They  aroused  attention  to  the  fact  that  high 
tolls  were  not  only  an  oppressive  burden  to 
the  transportation  interest,  but  were  really 
high  protective  tariffs  in  favor  of  rival  routes, 
tending  to  force  the  business,  which  of  right 
should  come  through  this  State,  into  other 
and  unnatural  directions. 

For  a  long  time  we  were  despondent  and 
almost  discouraged  by  the  want  of  interest 
manifested  in  a  question  of  such  vital  welfare 
to  the  State ;  but  now  we  are  pleased  to  see 
a  marked  change  for  the  better,  and  the 
people  at  large  begin  to  appreciate  their  true 
interest. 

It  is  but  just  to  the  departed  to  say  that  to 
no  one  person  are  we  more  indebted  for  the 
reduction  of  tolls  than  to  the  late  Hon.  Israel 
T.  Hatch. 

In  the  winter  of  1870  the  Legislature  passed 
the  resolution  known  as  the  “  Funding  Bill,” 
which  allowed  the  Canal  Board  to  reduce  the 
tolls  on  our  canals  to  one-half  the  then  estab¬ 
lished  rates,  or  say,  from  six  and  one  quarter 
cents  to  three  and  one  eighth  a  bushel  on 
wheat,  and  on  other  articles  in  proportion. 
Strange  as  it  now  appears,  there  was  strong 
opposition,  and  this  reduction  in  tolls  was  ob¬ 
tained  with  great  difficulty.  I  think  I  may 
safely  say,  if  it  had  not  been  for  the  passage 
of  Mr.  Hatch’s  “  Funding  Bill,”  we  should 
not  have  had  the  reduction  at  that  time. 

From  year  to  year  we  have  continued  to 
press  the*necessity  of  a  further  reduction  of 
tolls,  as  a  means  of  retaining  our  present 
commerce,  and- trying  to  regain  that  which 
for  years  past  has  been  finding  rival  routes; 
until  this  year  we  have  seen  our  Legislature 
pass  the  low-tolls  resolution  almost  unani¬ 
mously,  and  the  Canal  Board  adopted  it  with¬ 
out  a' dissenting  vote.  We  are  pleased  to 
know  that  the  people  of  our  State,  without 
regard  to  place  or  section,  are  beginning  to 
realize  that  it  is  to  the  Erie  Canal,  New-York 
must  look  for  the  power  of  perpetuating  her 
commercial  supremacy.  We  think  it  may 
now  be  said  that  there  is  hardly  a  disinterest¬ 
ed  person  in  our  State  who  has  its  true  inter¬ 


ests  at  heart,  who  will  not  say  that  her  true 
policy  is  to  charge  on  articles  transported  on 
our  canals  a  revenue,  sufficient  only  to  keep 
them  in  good  repair,  when  they  are  managed 
with  the  strictest  economy. 

INJURIOUS  HIGH-TOLLS  POLICY. 

When  we  look  back  and  see  the  great  in¬ 
jury  the  policy  of  high  tolls  has  done  to  the 
true  interest  of  our  State,  is  it  not  a  wonder 
that  this  system  was  so  long  maintained  ?  To 
see  more  clearly  what  a  high  protective 
tariff”  we  were  maintaining  to  foster  and 
build  up  rival  routes  and  destroy  our  own 
commerce,  let  me  state  what  these  tolls  and 
other  extra  expenses  in  1869  were,  as  com¬ 
pared  with  those  of  moving  a  bushel  of  wheat 
during  the  last  season.  Up  to  1869  the  tolls 
on  a  bushel  of  wheat  from  Buffalo  to  Troy, 
were,  as  we  have  seen,  six  and  a  q  jarter  cents 
a  bushel;  besides  these  tolls  the  extra  cost  of 
moving  a  bushel  of  wheat  over  the  expenses 
of  the  present  season  —  from  the  greater  cost 
of  canal  boats,  the  cost  of  labor,  provisions, 
horses,  and  the  delay  caused  by  the  bad  con¬ 
dition  of  the  canal,  was  probably  fully  three 
cents  a  bushel ;  that  is,  there  has  been  a  re¬ 
duction  in  tolls  of  five  cents,  and  in  expenses 
of  about  three  cents —  in  all  about  eighu  cents 
a  bushel,  or,  to  speak  more  clearly,  on  a  boat 
load  of  eight  thousand  bushels  of  wheat  there 
has  been  a  reduction,  in  tolls  and  expenses, 
of  fully  six  hundred  dollars,  so  that,  if 'it  costs 
six  cents  to  move  a  bushel  from  Buffalo  to 
New-York,  with  the  present  rate  of  tolls  — 
one  cent  a  bushel — it  cost  in  1869  and  years 
before,  under  the  high  tolls  policy,  about 
fourteen  cents  a  bushel  to  realize  the  same 
profit  for  transportation  as  now.  With  such 
a  high  destructive  tariff  to  foster  and  create 
rival  routes,  is  it  any  wonder  we  have  so 
many  lines  of  railroads  extending  from  the 
Atlantic  pqrts  to  the  far  West,  striving  with 
such  energy  for  the  business  of  the  country, 
and  that  at  one  time  the  managers  of  these 
trunk  lines  of  railroads  believed  they  could 
transport  property  cheaper  than  their  rival 
the  water-route  could  do  it,  and  even  talked 
glibly  of  drying  up  the  Erie  Canal? 

It  would  have  been  wise  if  the  .tolls  had 
been  reduced,  at  least  since  1860,  to  not  over 
ten  per  cent,  on  the  cost  of  moving  the  pro¬ 
perty  with  a  profit  to  the  boatmen.  Say  one- 
half  a  cent  a  bushel  on  wheat,  and  on  other 
articles  in  the  same  proportion.  The  revenue 
thus  obtained  would  have  been  amply  suffi¬ 
cient  to  keep  the  canals  in  repair,  and  make 
all  needful  improvements.  The  great  volume 
of  business  from  the  lakes,  and  that  of  all  the 
Western  railroads  terminating  at  the  lake 
ports,  would  now  be  passing  through  the 
canal  for  the  simple  reason  that  the  cost  of 
transportation  by  it  would  be  so  much 
cheaper  than  by  any  other  route,  and  New 
York  City  and  *  State,  would  have  been  so 
much  the  more  banefitted  by  this  trade. 

RUINOUS  RAILROAD  MANAGEMENT. 

Many  railroads  have  been  built  ahead  of  the 
requirements  of  the  times,  and  fostered  by 


3 


the  high  tolls  on  the  Erie  Canal,  that  never 
would  have  been  begun,  or  thought  of,  if  a 
wise  policy  had  governed  the  management  of 
the  canal  in  years  past.  Thus  millions  of 
dollars  have  been  misapplied,  and  worse  than 
wasted,  in  the  vain  effort  to  supercede  the 
cheapest  mode  of  transportation  by  a  more 
expensive  one.  I  think  there  is  no  well- 
informed  person  who  can  deny  these  state¬ 
ments.  As  we  now  can  see  the  mistakes  of 
the  past,  let  us  hope  that  in  the  future  wis¬ 
dom  will  govern  the  councils  of  the  State. 

Since  the  panic  of  1873  the  railroad  mana¬ 
gers  have  begun  to  realize  the  fact  that  there 
are  more  railroads  than  are  needed  for  the 
business  of  the  country. 

In  their  strife  for  business  we  see  quite  too 
often,  between  these  trunk  lines  and  the 
water  route  fierce  warfare,  which  has  caused 
great  injury  to  themselves  and  damage  to  the 
country. 

I  do  hot  now  design  to  speak  against  the  pre¬ 
sent  railroad  management,  but  I  must  say  I 
think  one  of  the  causes  of  our  hard  times  is 
the  vast  amount  of  money  invested  in  profitless 
railroads,  and  the  stupid,  irresponsible  man¬ 
agement  of  many  lines  that  could  under  wise 
counsels  be  made  to  pay  good  profits,  but 
now  too  often  wasting  their  earnings  in  pro¬ 
fitless  contentions.  The  great  mistake  many 
managers  of  the  trunk  line  railroads  have 
made  is,  trying  to  move  heavy  articles  of 
freight,  where  time  is  not  of  importance,  in 
competition  with  the  water  route.  It  is  impos¬ 
sible  for  them  to  do  this  with  profit.  When 
the  railroad  lines  avail  themselves  of  the  facil¬ 
ities  of  the  lakes  and  the  canals  they  can  com¬ 
mand  good  paying  rates. 

I  make  the  following  extract  from  the  Illi¬ 
nois  Central  Railroad  Company’s  report  of  the 
Directors  to  the  shareholders,  Jan.  31st,  1878. 
They  say : 

“  Finally  in  regard  to  the  competition  of  several 
years  past  between  water  communication  from 
Chicago  eastward  and  the  trunk  railways  —  which 
latter  determined  at  one  time  to  take  the  traffic 
from  Illinois  to  the  seaboard  regardless  of  cost  or 
profit  —  it  is  well  settled  that  the  inter-State  rail¬ 
ways  have  played  a  losing  game.  During  eight 
months  of  water  communication  the  facilities  for 
taking  by  water  are  so  much  improved  that  the 
actual  cost  of  water  transportation  to  the  seaboard 
is  less  than  half  the  actual  cost  of  rail  transpor¬ 
tation. 

“  It  is  admitted  that  the  outlays  made  to  increase 
the  carrying  capacities  of  the  railways  have  been 
improvident;  and  since  the  reduction  of  the  tolls 
upon  the  Erie  Canal,  by  the  State  of  New  York, 
cheap  water  communication  is  so  firmly  estab¬ 
lished  that  the  effort  to  take  freight  by  rail  during 
the  Summer  months  has  failed,  asindicated  by  the 
reports  of  several  of  the  leading  railways.  Dur¬ 
ing  the  contest,  freight  was  carried  in  large 
volume  at  about  half  of  the  actual  expense  in¬ 
curred.  It  can  hardly  be  expected  that  the  public 
will  loan  more  money  to  renew  this  contest,  which 
has  so  seriously  disturbed  the  value  of  railway 
properties.” 

RAIL  AND  WATER  TRANSPORTATION. 

The  Chicago  Times,  in  an  article  of  recent 
date,  on  the  warfare  of  the  railroads  on  the 
water  routes,  made  the  following  statement: 

“  No  intelligent  man  can  be  made  to  believe  that 
fifteen,  twenty,  or  twenty-five  cents  per  one  hun¬ 
dred  pounds  can  be  made  a  paying  rail-rate  be¬ 
tween  Chicago  and  New -York,  while  all  could  pre¬ 
dict  that  every  pound  taken  at  that  rate  caused 
actual  loss  to  the  transporter.  Grain  can  now  be 

grofitably  transported  via  the  Lakes  and  the  Erie 
anal  to  New- York  at  the  rate  of  ten  cents  per 
bushel,  while  no  railroad  can  afford  to  take  it  for 
less  than  eighteen  or  twenty  cents  (if  they  can  for 


that)  and  do  a  paying  business.  That  they  have 
carried  it  for  a  less  rate  in  times  past  is  no  proof 
to  the  contrary,  and  it  is  only  a  question  of  time, 
when  they  shall  cease  to  pay  dividends  under  it. 
The  difference  between  a  water  and  rail-rouie  is 
simply  enormous.  Although  the  former,  as  be¬ 
tween  Chicago  and  New-York,  is  two  to  one  as  to 
length,  yet  the  cost  of  transportation  is  governed 
by  an  inverse  ratio,  and  is  one-half  less,  thus  con¬ 
stituting  a  proportion  of  four  to  one,  in  favor  of 
water.  That  this  great  difference  will  soon  decide 
the  transportation  problem  in  favor  of  the  water 
route  scarcely  admits  of  doubt.” 

I  think  that  the  most  sanguine  believers  in 
the  ability  of  railroads  to  compete  successfully 
with  the  water-routes  —  the  lakes  and  the 
Erie  Canal  (strange  to  say,  there  are  such)  — 
will  admit  that  they  cannot  profitably  contend 
with  the  large  crafts  on  the  Great  Lakes, 
from  Duluth,  Milwaukee  and  Chicago  to  Buf¬ 
falo.  During  the  last  ten  years  the  cost  of 
transportation  on  the  Upper  Lakes  has  been 
greatly  cheapened,  so  that  the  rate  at  which 
property  can  now  be  carried  profitably,  would 
not  then  have  been  believed  to  be  possible. 
For  the  next  ten  years,  I  am  confident,  we 
shall  1  ee  the  cost  "of  transportation  on  the 
lakes  still  further  reduced.  The  deepening  of 
the  “  Lime-Kilns  ”  crossing  will  add  to  the 
tonnage  of  lake  crafts,  with  no  additional 
expense.  The  building  of  harbors  of  refuge 
on  all  the  lakes,  good  and  safe  harbors  at  each 
lake  port,  the  signal  service,  and  many  other 
inventions  that  will  be  made  use  of,  will  all 
tend  to  make  transportation  on  these  Inland 
Seas  almost  as  safe  as  the  navigation  of  a  river, 
and  thus  cheapen  its  cost.  If  it  is  true,  as  we 
believe,  that  it  is  not  possible  for  the  trunk 
lines  of  railroads,  running  from  Chicago  to 
the  sea-board  cities,  profitably  to  compete, 
during  the  season  of  lake  and  canal  naviga¬ 
tion,  with  the  lakes  and  the  Erie  Canal  under 
the  present  rates  of  low  tolls  and  an  ample 
tonnage,  and  also  impossible  for  them  to  com¬ 
pete  profitably  with  the  large  crafts  on  the 
lakes  from  Chicago  to  Buffalo,  the  question 
naturally  follows,  whether  the  free  commerce 
of  the  lakes  and  the  Erie  Canal,  with  present 
rate  of  tolls  and  tonnage,  can  compete  suc¬ 
cessfully  with  the  railroads  extending  from 
the  sea-board  and  terminating  at  lake  ports, 
which  have  lines  of  propellers,  and  vessels 
used  as  barges,  running  in  connection  with 
them,  with  agents  at  all  the  Western  lake 
ports  seeking  freights  and  giving  through 
bills  of  lading. 

In  connection  with  the  free  commerce  of 
the  lakes  we  have  the  Erie  Canal.  Its  im¬ 
portance  far  surpasses  ordinary  canals.  It  is 
practically  a  strait,  or  short  channel,  connect¬ 
ing  an  arm  of  the  Atlantic  Ocean  with  these 
great  Island  Seas. 

From  Buffalo,  its  Western  terminus,  to  Troy, 
the  distance  is  three  hundred  and  forty-five 
miles,  and  from  Troy  to  New-York,  via  the 
Hudson  River,  one  hundred  and  fifty  miles. 
Altogether  the  canal-boats  navigate  about  five 
hundred  miles. 

The  canal  legally  has  a  prism  of  seventy 
feet  at  the  surface,  and  fifty-six  feet  at  the 
bottom,  with  seven  feet  depth  of  water  all  its 
way,  and  seventy-two  double  locks.  If  this 
is  not  now  literally  and  practically  true,  we 
hope  and  believe  that  under  the  new  manage¬ 
ment  it  soon  will  be. 

I  do  not  think  any  one  will  pretend  that  the 
original  Erie  Canal  with  boats  of  only  seven¬ 
ty-five  tons  capacity,  even  if  free  from  all 
tolls,  could  profitably  compete  with  the  Cen¬ 
tral  and  Erie  Railroads,  in  their  present  con- 


^  1  C?<3  A  4- 


4 


dition,  nor  could  the  present  Erie  Canal,  with 
boats  now  averaging  two  hundred  and  twenty 
tons,  and  under  the  high  tolls  of  1869,  of  six 
and  a  quarter  cents  per  bushel  on  wheat,  etc., 
compete  with  the  Railroads  of  this  State,  or 
those  that  terminate  at  Philadelphia  or  Balti¬ 
more,  and  own  or  control  lines  of  propellers 
on  the  lakes. 

It  is  seriously  asserted  by  some,  that  these 
short  lines  of  Railroads,  connected  as  they 
now  are,  with  these  lines  of  large  propellers 
on  the  lakes,  can  now  carry  freight  at  less  cost 
than  the  present  sized  boats  on  the  Erie  Canal, 
with  the  rate  of  tolls  of  this  season,  can  do  it 
with  profit.  I  consider  all  such  views  erro¬ 
neous.  Let  us  now  see  what  the  free  com¬ 
merce  on  the  lakes  and  the  Erie  Canal  has  to 
contend  against.  For  the  true  interest  of  the 
canals,  and  the  free  commerce  on  these  inland 
6eas,  vast  and  important  as  it  is,  are  one  and 
the  same. 

HIGH  CANAL  TOLLS  FOSTERING  RIVAL 
ROUTES. 

I  now  call  your  attention  more  directly  to 
the  strong  competition,  and  the  rival  routes, 
that  the  high  tolls  on  the  Erie  Canal  in  years 
past,  have  built  up. 

First,  we  have  the  New- York  Central  and 
Hudson  River  Railroad,  by  which  the  distance 
from  Buffalo  to  New- York,  is  four  hundred 
and  forty  miles.  This  road  has  running  in 
connection  with  it,  between  Buffalo,  Chicago 
and  Milwaukee,  no  less  than  ten  large,  first- 
class,  propellers. 

By  the  Erie  Railroad,  the  Western  end  of 
which  now  terminates  here,  the  distance  from 
Buffalo  to  New-York,  is  four  hundred  and 
twenty-two  miles.  It  owns  a  line  of  thirteen 
first-class  propellers  and  vessels  that  run  be¬ 
tween  Buffalo.  Chicago  and  Milwaukee. 

The  Pennsylvania  Railroad  controls  a  line 
of  sixteen  propellers,  and  sailing  vessels  tow¬ 
ed  as  barges,  that  run  between  Buffalo,  Erie, 
Chicago  and  Milwaukee.  The  distance  by 
rail  from  Erie  to  Philadelphia,  is  four  hundred 
and  forty-six  miles;  from  Erie  to  Baltimore, 
is  four  hundred  and  twenty-nine  miles.  The 
distance  from  Buffalo  to  Philadelphia  via  the 
Buffalo,  N.  Y.  &  P.  R.  R.,  connecting  with 
the  Pennsylvania  Road  at  Emporium,  is  four 
hundred  and  twenty-five  miles,  and  to  Balti¬ 
more  is  four  hundred  and  five  miles. 

Besides  these  I  have  named  there  is  the 
Lake  Superior  Line,  of  ten  first-class  propel¬ 
lers,  running  from  Duluth  and  the  Lake  Su¬ 
perior  ports  to  Buffalo  and  Erie,  in  connec¬ 
tion  with  the  Central,  Erie,  and  Pennsylvania 
Railroads. 

The  Baltimore  and  Ohio  Railroads  connect 
with  the  lakes  at  Sandusky.  The  distance  is 
about  six  hundred  miles  from  Sandusky  to 
Baltimore. 

The  Grand  Trunk  Line  of  railroads  connects 
with  the  lakes  at  Sarnia,  a  distance  of  about 
five  hundred  miles  from  Sarnia  to  Montreal. 
These  roads  have  propellers  and  vessels  run¬ 
ning  to  Lakes  Michigan  and  Superior  in  con¬ 
nection  with  them  during  the  season  of  lake 
navigation,  how  many,  I  am  not  now 
advised. 

We  have  seen  that  the  distance  from  Buf¬ 
falo  to  New-York  via  the  New-York  Central 
<fc  Hudson  River  Railrbad  or  the  Erie  Road,  is 
greater  than  the  distance  from  Erie  or  from 
Buffalo,  via  the  Pennsylvania  Road,  to  Phila¬ 
delphia  or  Baltimore. 

In  the  published  tariffs  of  the  roads  the 


all  rail  ”  rate  from  Chicago  to  Philadelphia 
or  Baltimore  is  less  than  the  rate  from  the 
same  place  to  New-York.  Now  you  see  there 
is  the  same  discrimination  against  New-York 
City,  whether  freight  is  taken  by  the  lakes  or 
by  rail.  In  the  report  of  the  Chicago  Board 
of  Trade  for  1877,  taking  the  month  of  July 
as  an  illustration,  the  rate  from  Chicago  to 
New-York,  by  the  lakes  and  railroad,  was,  on 
flour  fifty  cents  a  barrel  and  on  wheat  fifteen 
cents  a  bushel,  while  the  rate  to  Philadelphia 
and  Baltimore,  was  but  forty-six  cents  on  a 
barrel  of  flour,  and  twelve  cents  a  bushel  on 
wheat. 

The  question  now  follows,  can  the  lakes, 
with  their  free  commerce,  and  the  canal  with 
boats  of  the  present  size,  and  the  present  rate 
of  tolls,  compete  successfully  with  these  lines 
of  railroads,  running  as  they  do  in  connection 
with  these  of  the  largest  propellers  and  giving 
through  bills  of  lading.  I  answer  I  hope  they 
can, and  I  believe  they  can !  But  to  do  it  success¬ 
fully  there  must  be  ample  tonnage,  and  the 
canal  must  be  kept  in  good  order. 

The  high  tolls  on  the  Erie  Canal  in  years 
past,  and  the  warfare  of  the  trunk  railroad 
lines,  since  the  panic  of  1873,  have  done  much 
to  drive  tonnage  off  from  the  canals.  The  re¬ 
duction  of  tolls  did  not  come  too  soon.  Without 
it,  in  a  few  years  more,  nearly  all  the  busi¬ 
ness  of  the  canals  would  have  been  destroyed. 

INTERDEPENDENCE  OF  LAKE  AND  CANAL 
COMMERCE. 

Now  here  let  us  clearly  see  how  intimately 
the  free  commerce  of  the  lakes  is  dependent 
on,  and  connected  with  the  Erie  Canal,  and 
the  free  commerce  of  the  canals  is  dependent 
on  the  lakes.  Tolls  on  the  canal  can  be  kept 
at  such  high  rates  as  to  drive  from  the  lakes 
this  free  commerce,  unless  there  is  some  other 
cheaper  outlet,  or  route,  than  the  Erie  Canal, 
for  the  through  railroad  lines  and  railroads 
connecting  with  propellers,  could  carry 
cheaper  than  vessels  on  the  lakes  and  canal 
could  carry  with  profit,  and  conversely  the 
Erie  Canal  at  little  expense  in  comparison 
with  the  great  benefits  that  would  follow  can 
be  so  improved  and  if  freed  from  tolls,  trans¬ 
portation  on  it  can  be  done  at  such  low  rates 
that  not  only  the  free  commerce  on  the  lakes 
will  be  assured,  but  all  kinds  of  freight,  where 
short  time  in  transit  is  not  an  object,  and 
where  cheapness  of  transportation  is  an  ob¬ 
ject,  will  go  forward  by  the  Erie  Canal,  be¬ 
cause  they  can  be  freighted  on  it  at  so  much 
less  cost  than  is  possible  by  rail,  then  railroad 
managers  will  give  up  the  strife,  as  the  contest 
will  be  so  hopeless. 

Thus  we  see  that  the  Erie  Canal  is  the  key 
to  the  situation  in  determining  the  question 
of  the  price  of  freight  between  the  West  and 
the  East.  By  this  channel,  and  this  alone, 
can  we  keep  the  commerce  of  the  great  West 
moving  through  our  State,  making  it  the  com¬ 
mon  passageway. 

If  the  contest  for  the  commerce  of  the 
West  were  only  between  our  own  Trunk 
Railroad  lines  and  the  Erie  Canal  it  would 
not  be  so  important,  but  the  strife  is  with 
Railroad  lines  that  lead  to  Philadelphia,  Bal¬ 
timore  and  Montreal.  These  lines  have  facil¬ 
ities  equal,  if  not  superior,  to  those  of  New- 
York.  The  enlargement  of  the  canal  to  its 
present  size,  enabling  it  to  pass  boats  of  two 
hundred  and  twenty  tons  has  cheapened 
freight  one  half.  It  is  confidently  claimed  by 


many,  that  if  we  should  further  enlarge  the 
locks  and  prism,  so  that  boats  of  six  hundred 
tons  could  be  passed,  it  would  further  cheapen 
the  cost  to  one-half  the  present  amount.  It 
may  be  said  that  the  canal-boats,  now  in  use, 
are  large  enough.  I  will  not  argue  on  this 
question  ;  this  may  be  true,  and  it  may  not  be 
true.  When  the  Canadian  ship-canals  are 
completed,  so  that  the  largest  Lake  vessels 
can  pass  into  the  lower  St.  Lawrence,  then,  if 
it  should  be  found  that  our  canal  boats  are 
not  large  enough  to  compete  successfully  for 
the  carrying  trade,  we  shall  have  again  to  do 
as  we  have  done  before,  increase  their  size. 
But  first  it  will  be  necessary  to  enlarge  the 
locks  and,  perhaps,  tile  prism  of  the  canal. 
That  increasing  the  size  of  the  vessel  has  the 
effect  of  decreasing  the  cost  of  freighting,  is 
no  experiment  or  theory,  it  is  a  demonstrated 
fact  beyond  any  dispute. 

CARRYING  CAPACITY  OF  THE  ERIE  CANAL. 

The  canal  as  it  now  is,  can  carry  all  the 
freight  likely  to  be  offered,  and  greatly  more. 
The  capacity  of  the  canal  is  not  the  question ; 
the  question  is,  can  it  do  its  work  as  cheaply 
as  its  rival  routes  are  likely  to  do  it?  The 
only  sensible  answer  to  this  query,  is,  if  our 
boats  are  found  to  be  so  small  as  to  forbid  a 
reduction  of  freight  charges  we  must  follow 
the  example  set  us  by  the  lake  marine,  in¬ 
crease  their  size,  and  so  decrease  the  cost  of 
freighting.  Those  who  assert  that  our  canal- 
boats  are  large  enough,  must  on  reflection 
admit  that  it  is  a  problem  not  to  be  hastily  de¬ 
cided,  dependent,  as  it  is,  on  so  many  contin¬ 
gencies. 

The  champions  of  the  “  Illinois  System,’’ 
the  canal  steamer  and  barge,  or  double-boats, 
assert  that  with  a  free  canal  such  boats  can 
profitably  carry  freight  so  low  as  to  reclaim 
the  business  on  the  present  sized  canal.  There 
is  this  in  favor  of  the  plan:  it  practically  gives 
us  a  boat  of  four  hundred  and  seventy  tons, 
and  our  double  locks  are  in  its  favor,  as  both 
the  boats  can  be  locked  down  at  once  and 
come  up  together,  if  the  locks  are  free.  But 
the  two  together  make  a  long  and  narrow 
boat,  which  must  be  handled  with  great  care, 
and  with  the  present  depth  of  water  must  go 
slow. 

It  has  been  asked,  why  not  let  these  boats 
draw  only  five  feet,  and  not,  as  now,  'Six 
feet,  and  thus  have  two  feet  of  water  under 
the  boat  instead  of  one  foot  as  now  ?  With 
the  greater  depth  of  water  the  boats  could  be 
handled  more  safely  and  make  better  time  at 
less  expense;  but  this  loss  of  a  draft  of  one 
foot  for  each  boat  lessens  its  capacity  about 
fifty  tons,  or  about  one  hundred  tons  for  the 
two,  and  this  would  add  about  one  cent  a 
bushel  to  the  cost  of  transportation,  and  is  my 
answer  to  this  suggestion. 

We  have  been  informed  by  the  proprietors 
of  the  ‘‘Belgian  System”  of  towing  boats, 
that  their  cable  will  be  laid  throughout  the 
entire  length  of  the  Erie  Canal  during  this 
season.  I  trust  this  may  be  so.  I  have  more 
faith  in  this  system  of  towing  canal-boats, 
than  in  any  of  the  other  schemes  proposed.  I 
hope  the  company  may  be  able  to  accomplish 
all  that  its  most  sanguine  friends  claim. 
Towing  by  horse-power  is,  we  all  must  admit, 
a  very  safe  and  economical  method  of  trans¬ 
portation,  and  the  prospect  is  that  it  will  be 
continued  on  the  canal  for  many  years  to 
come. 


THE  MISSISSIPPI  AND  ST.  LAWRENCE  ROttTES. 

I  have  not  as  yet  spoken  of  our  danger  from 
the  Mississippi  River  route,  and  the  enlarged 
St.  Lawrence  canals:  but  I  claim  that  if  there 
was  no  other  reason  but  to  enable  our  boats 
on  the  canal  to  compete  more  successfully 
with  the  ‘*lake  and  rail  lines”  and  the  “  all 
rail  lines,”  we  need  a  free  canal,  simply  be¬ 
cause  it  is  the  quickest  and  most  economical 
way  to  cheapen  the  route.  By  obtaining  it 
you  will  take  away  the  power  of  the  rival 
railroad  routes  to  compete  injuriously,  and 
this  will  bring  the  business  to  the  canals,  the 
State,  and  the  City  of  New-York. 

We  are  naturally  led  to  enquire  what  diver¬ 
sion  of  our  commerce  we  have  reason  to  ex¬ 
pect  from  the  improvement  of  the  Mississippi 
River,  and  the  enlargement  of  the  Welland 
and  St.  Lawrence  canals,  so  that  vessels  of  the 
largest  tonnage  on  the  lakes  can  be  pas;sed 
through  to  Montreal  or  to  Quebec. 

The  general  government  of  the  United 
States  is  today  paying  out  hundreds  of  thous¬ 
ands  of  dollars  to  increase  and  enlarge  the 
outlet  of  the  Mississippi  river.  Canada  is 
now  enlarging  her  canals  so  as  to  enable  a 
vessel  of  eighteen  hundred  tons  to  be  loaded 
at  Chicago  and  discharged  at  Montreal  or 
Quebec, or,  as  some  enthusiastic  persons  be¬ 
lieve,  sent  directly  to  Great  Britain.  The 
latter  course,  we  think,  can  never  be  made 
profitable  in  these  days  of  ships  of  enormous 
tonnage.  This  thing  has  been  worked  out  on 
the  lakes. 

Let  us  first  consider  the  Mississippi  route. 
We  must  admit  that  it  has  the  advantage  of 
generally  being  navigable,  at  least  from  Cairo 
to  New-Orleans,  throughout  the  whole  year, 
and  that  deepening  the  mouth  of  the  river  en¬ 
ables  vessels  of  large  size  to  come  up  to  the 
latter  city.  To  show  what  is  claimed  for  this 
route  I  quote  from  the  /St.  Louis  Republican , 
of  March  4th,  1878,  viz : 

“As  to  the  future  of  the  route,  it  can  be  can¬ 
didly  confessed  that  all  is  doubt  and  conjecture, 
so  far  as  the  extent  of  cheapening  of  rates  is  feas¬ 
ible.  It  is  a  manifest  fact  that  with  increase  in 
the  shipments  increased  tonnage  and  sharper  com¬ 
petition  will  follow;  while  still  other  possibilities 
hang  on  the  chances  of  improvements  in  the  tow¬ 
boats  and  barges  and  the  deepening  of  the  river 
channel.  Wha  tever  these  may  be,  it  is  no  doubtful 
matter  that  the  river  route  will  always  be,  as  it  is 
now,  the  cheapest  on  the  continent.  The  grain  rate 
from  St.  Louis  to  New-Orleans  is  placed  at  seven 
and  one-half  cents  per  bushel,  by  most  of  the  St. 
Louis  merchants  who  have  been  interviewed ;  thei’e 
is  reason  to  believe  that  it  has  been  carried  actually 
for  seven  cents  in  large  lots.  But  let  it  stand 
at  seven  and  one-half  cents.  The  elevator  and 
transfer  charges  at  New-Orleans  are  one-half  a 
cent  and  the  freight  rate  to  Liverpool  has  recently 
been  twenty  cents  per  bushel— which  makes  the 
rate  from  St.  Louis  to  Liverpool  twenty-eight  cents, 
exclusive  of  insurance.” 

Speaking  of  the  possibility  of  cheapening 
the  Mississippi  route,  the  Republican  further 
says: 

“  W e  have  not  begun  to  try  the  cheapening  pro¬ 
cess  on  the  river.  As  stated,  the  general  opinion 
is  that  the  freight  rate  from  St.  Louis  can  be  re¬ 
duced  to  between  three  and  four  cents  per  bushel, 
and  this  opinion  is  supported  by  the  plain  fact  that 
a  tow-boat  with  six  barges,  carrying  240,000  bush¬ 
els  of  grain,  at  the  most  liberal  estimates  involves 
a  capital  of  only  $100,000.  The  expenses  of  the 
boat  and  its  tow  to  New-Orleans,  and  back  to  St. 
Louis,  will  average  from  $150  to  $200  a  day,  and  the 
round  trip  takes  from  eighteen  to  twenty-two  days. 
Taking  the  outside  figures,  the  round  trip  expenses 
will  reach  $4,400.  Now  the 240,000  bushels  of  grain, 
at  three  cents  per  bushel,  would  yield  $7,200;  and 
if  an  allowance  of  500  tons  of  freight,  at  ten  cents 


pei*  100  pounds,  up  the  river  is  made,  the  earnings 
will  be  increased  to  $8,300;  so  that  the  net  profits 
will  stand  about  $4,000  on  an  investment  of  $100,000 
during  twenty-two  days.  So  that  if  the  tow  and 
barges  make  one  round  trip  each  month,  the  annual 
dividends  will  be  nearly  fifty  per  cent,  per  annum 
on  the  capital  invested.  These  are  very  liberal 
figures,  and  it  is  claimed  by  many  that  the  tow 
and  barges  can  be  got  for  $50,000,  instead  of  $100,- 
000,  and  the  expense  of  the  crew  cut  down  to  less 
than  $100  per  day.  But  without  such  close  calcu¬ 
lation  the  facts*  show  that  the  river  rate  can  be 
shown  to  be  less  than  half  the  lowest  rate 
dreamed  of  by  the  lake  route,  and  yet  yield  enor¬ 
mous  profits. 

One  more  fact  remains  to  be  considered,  and  that 
is  the  difference  in  time  by  the  two  routes.  The 
trip  to  New- York,  by  the  lakes  and  canal,  occupies 
seventeen  to  twenty  days;  to  New-Orleans  only 
seven  days.  This  is  without  the  Government 
spending  a  dollar  more  on  the  river  than  it  had  in 
past  years.  Insurance,  running  expenses  and  time 
will  all  be  lower  when  a  permanent  channel  of 
tAventy  feet  is  provided,  as  it  will  be  in  less  than 
ten  years.” 

The  Chicago  Times,  in  a  recent  article  on 
the  Mississippi  route,  says  as  follows  : 

“The  Times  has  no  desire  to  belittle  this  move¬ 
ment,  if  it  really  has  merit  in  it.  If  it  is  feasible  it 
will  succeed  any  way,  no  matter  what  may  be  said 
against  it.  In  the  latitude  of  St.  Louis,  very  natu¬ 
rally,  high  anticipations  are  fostered.  I  am  not 
shutting  my  eyes  to  the  fact  that  the  movement  is 
just  now  gathering  strength  and  gaining  ground, 
but  I  assure  you  it  will  not  last.  There  Avill  be  a 
spurt,  and  then  it  will  all  die  out  again.  But  here¬ 
tofore  the  great  trouble  has  been  that  the  channel 
would  not  admit  large  Ocean  vessels,  and  that  de¬ 
fect  is  now  remedied,  it  is  claimed.  In  the  general 
public  estimation,  that  has  been  regarded  as  the 
great  obstacle ;  but  as  I  look  at  it,  that  has  been 
the  least.  There  are  two  or  three  objections  far 
more  formidable.  One  of  these  is  the  climate.  On 
this  account  the  route  is  practicable  only  during  a 
few  months  during  the  Winter,  and  then  only  to 
grain  in  the  very  best  condition.  The  Mississippi 
takes  queer  notions  to  freeze,  now  and  then,  at 
points  considerably  below  St.  Louis,  and  when  it 
does  the  supply  is  suddenly  cut  off.  A  route  sub¬ 
ject  to  so  many  contingencies  can  never  become 
popular.  If  New-Orleans  could  be  made  a  great 
market,  such  as  Chicago  is,  it  would  be  otherwise; 
but  that  can  never  be.  It  is  altogether  too  danger¬ 
ous  to  ship  property  to  that  point,  at  haphazard,  as 
people  do  to  Chicago,  knowing  that  our  market  is 
seldom  affected  by  the  receipts.  But  at  the  moment 
that  there  would  bean  accumulation  of  a  few  hun¬ 
dred  thousand  bushels, without  shipping  facilities, 
the  bottom  wouldMa-ll  completely  out  of  the  whole 
business  and  the  property  would  be  worthless. 
The  only  way  in  which  the  market  could  be  re¬ 
lieved  would  be  to  ship  back  again  to  the  North. 
I  hold,  therefore,  that  anything  like  a  steady  move¬ 
ment  in  that  direction  is  out  of  the  question,  and  I 
predict  that  the  Mississippi  route  Avill  never  cut 
any  great  figure.  These  views  are  not  theoretical; 
they  are  eminently  practical.  Experience  has 
taught  this,  that  at  the  point  where  grain  is  trans¬ 
ferred,  or  from  Avhence  it  is  shipped,  there  must 
be  a  market,  to  get  rid  of  it  at  no  great  loss,  if  the 
supply  exceeds  the  demand,  or  else  the  whole  busi¬ 
ness  goes  to  smash,  eArerybody  knows  that.  New- 
Orleans  can  never  be  made  a'market,  and  that,  to 
my  mind,  ends  the  whole  business.” 

Having  given  you  extracts  from  the  St. 
Louis  Republican  presenting  the  most  favor¬ 
able  views  of  the  Mississippi  route,  also  from 
the  Chicago  Times,  giving  reasons  why  that 
journal  thinks  the  river  route  will  not  be  a 
success,  I  will  adduce  some  other  reasons  we 
have  for  not  fearing  the  Mississippi  route,  and 
point  out  Avhere  our  real  danger  lies. 

TRADE  CHANNELS  FOR  THE  RED  RIVER 
COUNTRY. 

Only  a  few  years  ago  little  was  known  of 
the  “Red  River  of  the  North,”  or  of  its  val¬ 
ley.  The  region  through  which  that  river 
flows  was  thought  to  be  cold,  inhospitable  and 


utterly  worthless.  Since  the  Northern  Pa¬ 
cific  Railroad  was  constructed  across  the  val¬ 
ley,  farms  have  been  opened  and  cultivation 
commenced,  and  it  has  been  found  that  both 
soil  and  climate  are  favorable  to  the  produc¬ 
tion  of  wheat,  of  a  very  superior  quality, 
with  heavy  yields.  It  is  now  generally  ad¬ 
mitted  that  in  this  valley  of  the  Red  River, 
and  its  connecting  ATallevs,  including  hun¬ 
dreds  of  thousands  of  square  miles  of  exce1- 
lent  land,  both  in  Canada  and  the  United 
States,  will  be  grown  a  large  proportion  of 
our  supply  of  wheat  for  home  use  and  ex¬ 
port.  All  the  wheat  sent  out  of  the  Red 
River  must  come  to  the  market  in  the  East, 
down  the  lakes  throughout  the  season  when 
they  are  open  for  navigation.  Why  this  must 
be  so  I  will  try  to  explain. 

Moorhead  at  the  crossing  of  the  Northern 
Pacific  Railroad,  on  the  Red  River,  is  an  im¬ 
portant  town,  near  the  head  of  navigation, 
and  until  the  river  is  connected  with  Lake 
Superior  by  slack-water  and  canals,  will  be  a 
great  wheat  depot.  The  distance  from  it  to 
Duluth,  on  Lake  Superior,  is  two  hundred  and 
fifty  miles.  By  the  line  of  the  railroads,  from 
Moorhead  to  St.  Paul,  is  two  hundred  and 
fifty  miles,  and  the  latter  city  is  at  the  head 
of  steamboat  navigation  on  the  Mississippi. 
The  distance  from  St.  Paul  to  the  mouth  of 
the  Mississippi  is  two  thousand  and  seventy 
miles,  and  from  the  mouth  of  that  river 
to  the  latitude  of  NeAv-York,  which  is  the 
course  of  all  shipping  bound  to  Northern 
Europe,  it  is  fully  two  thousand  miles  more. 
From  Duluth  to"  New-York  by  the  route  of 
the  lakes,  the  Erie  Canal  and  the  Hudson 
River,  the  distance  is  about  fourteen  hundred 
miles.  Navigation  on  the  lakes  and  the  Canal 
is  open  as  late  in  the  Fall  and  as  early  in  the 
Spring  as  on  the  upper  Mississippi.  The 
period  of  navigation  is  nearly  the  same  on 
the  upper  Mississippi,  above  Galena,  the 
Great  Lakes  and  the  Erie  Canal.  The  lake 
and  canal  route  has  the  advantage  of 
uniform  and  greater  depth  of  water 
for  navigation  which  tends  to  greater 
speed  and  despatch.  While  that  of 
the  Mississippi  is  deficient  in  uniformity  of 
depth  and  frequently  there  are  less  than  two 
feet  of  water  over  the  sand-bars  below  St. 
Paul,  in  the  very  season  of  the  year  when 
business  is  most  active.  Aside  from  the  dis¬ 
advantages  of  the  fluctuations  in  the  depth  of 
the  water  in  the  Mississippi,  its  mouth  is 
more  than  twTo  thousand  miles  further  from 
the  ports  in  Europe,  where  our  exports  of 
grain  have  to  go,  than  it  is  from  New-York  to 
the  same  ports.  While  it  is  but  seventeen 
hundred  miles  from  Moorhead,  through  the 
lakes  and  canal,  to  New-York,  it  is  twenty- 
three  hundred  and  thirty  miles  from  that 
place  to  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  and  that  by  a 
river  navigation,  which  is  more  costly  than 
the  lake  navigation.  The  total  distance  from 
Moorhead  to  “Liverpool,  by  the  course  of  the 
railroad,  lakes,  canal,  Hudson  and  the  ocean, 
is  four  thousand  seven  hundred  miles.  By 
railroad  to  St.  Paul,  the  Mississippi,  the  Gulf 
of  Mexico  and  the  ocean,  it  is  seven  thousand 
three  hundred  and  thirty  miles.  There  being 
a  difference  in  favor  of  the  Northern  route  of 
about  two  thousand  six  hundred  and  thirty 
miles,  and  a  gain  of  over  half  in  time.  The 
climate  of  New-Orleans  is  known  to  be  unfav¬ 
orable  to  the  safe  handling  of  corn  and  wheat, 
and  besides  it  is  dreadfully  unhealthy  in  the 
Fall  season  for  Northern  people.  It  may  be 


concluded  that  this  Mississippi  project  for 
carrying  the  grain  of  the  Northwest  to  the 
Eastern  or  European  market  belongs  to  the 
category  of  the  visionary ;  such  as  the  great 
Mississippi  and  Atlantic  double  track,  steel- 
rail,  freight-railroad,  projected  by  well-mean¬ 
ing  theorists  who  are  not  strong  in  practical 
science.  “  A  shingle  put  into  the  Mississippi 
at  St.  Paul,”  says  an  authority  of  that  city, 
“will  float  down  the  river  and  up  the  Gulf 
Stream  to  New- York.”  Give  it  time  enough 
and  it  will  float  along  to  the  coasts  of  Iceland 
aud  Norway  and  as  far  as  the  Gulf  Stream 
will  take  it;  but  no  man  of  sense  would  pro- 
j)ose  to  send  grain,  or  other  exports,  to  mar¬ 
ket  in  any  such  way.  Things  do  not  drift 
now,  they  go  right  ahead.  Another  reason 
why  the  “Mississippi  route  will  not  be  a  suc¬ 
cess,  is  that  the  lines  of  railroads  running 
East  and  West  and  terminating  at  the  West¬ 
ern  lake  ports,  will  find  it  a  necessity  to  work 
in  the  interests  of  the  Northern  route.  It  can 
be  easily  demonstrated,  and  I  think  the  man¬ 
agers  now  fully  admit,  that  the  prosperity  of 
the  lives  of  these  railroads  depends  on  their 
availing  themselves  of  the  cheap  water-route, 
of  the  lakes  and  canal.  By  so  doing  they  can 
become  paying  roads.  .Deny  them  the  use  of 
this  water-route  and  their  ruin  is  inevitable. 
DEPENDENCE  OF  WESTERN  RAILROADS  ON 
CHEAP  WATER  ROUTES. 

These  views  were  well  expressed  by  the 
Toledo  Daily  Commercial  of  May  24th,  1877. 
In  an  article  on  “  The  Profitless  Fight  of 
Water  and  Railways,”  it  said : 

“  The  falling  off  in  Lake  and  Canal  trade  com¬ 
menced  when  the  Western  Roads  began  to  dis¬ 
criminate  against  the  water  lines,  by  hauling  at 
lower  rates  for  Eastern  rail  connections  than  they 
did  for  water  connections.  The  folly  of  this  course 
has  been  proven,  by  the  fact  that  the  stocks  of  all 
except  the  last  of  the  above  mentioned  Roads  are 
now  vei’y  low.  The  fact  of  their  all  paying  good 
dividends  under  the  original  system,  and  on  much 
smaller  volume  of  business  than  they  are 
now  having,  and  that  they  are  now,  with 
one  exception,  unprofitable,  is  direct  proof 
that  the  change  of  policy  was  a  fatal  blunder.  Pro¬ 
rating  with  the  Eastern  trunk  lines,  they  have  re¬ 
duced  their  revenue  on  an  increased  tonnage.  Par¬ 
ticipating  in  a  fight  against  the  water  lines,  they 
have  contributed  largely  to  the  destruction  of 
strong  natural  and  advantageous  allies.  They 
have  gone  to  destruction  from  mmgling  in  a  con¬ 
test  in  which  they  had  no  interest,  and  which  they 
had  the  deepest  interest  in  preventing.” 

If  time  would  admit  I  might  quote  from 
many  competent  authorities,  showing  the  de¬ 
pendence  of  these  Western  Railroads  on  a 
cheap  water  route ;  but  I  will  only  present  to 
you  extracts  from  two  letters  by  eminent 
Railroad  officials.  One  wrote: 

“  I  do  not  think  your  State  can  afford  to  lose  any 
time  in  declaring  for  a  free  Canal.  As  I  have  be¬ 
fore  stated  we  do  not  disguise  our  motives  in  this 
matter.  Our  very  existence  depends  on  freedom 
from  tolls,  and  we,  and  other  Western  lines  of 
Railroads  can,  and  must  make  up  to  the  State  of 
New- York  by  giving  her  principal  cities  a  whole¬ 
sale  trade  which  will  compensate  for  the  loss  of 
tolls.” 

From  another  letter,  I  extract  the  following : 

“  We  do  not  take  any  stock  in  the  Jetties  and  do 
not  propose  to,  until  we  are  forced  into  it.  We 
cannot  violate  a  sound  principle  for  any  tempor¬ 
ary  gain.  If  New-York  trade  were  removed  to 
New-Orleans,  we  should  not  have  any  such  coun¬ 
try  to  haul  merchandise  to,  and  produce  from, 
West  and  North  of  our  City,  as  we  have  South  and 
West  of  St.  Louis.” 

We  owe  it  in  good  faith  to  these  Western 
railroads,  which  are  our  natural  allies,  to  make 
the  route  through  our  State,  by  the  Erie 


Canal,  as  cheap  as  possible  and  by  so  doing 
we  shall  alike  insure  their  prosperity,  and 
keep  the  volume  of  trade  moving  through  our 
State.  The  Eastern  and  Western  lines  of 
railroads  in  this  State  have  an  equal  interest 
with  those  in  the  West  in  keeping  the  canal 
the  cheapest  water  route.  This  truth  is  too 
plain  to  dwell  upon.  Where  wmuld  it  be 
possible  in  this  broad  land  for  four  tracks  of 
rail  to  be  profitably  used  except  through  this 
State  and  along  the  bank  of  the  Erie  Canal? 

The  Pennsylvania  railroad  and  the  Balti¬ 
more  and  Ohio  roads,  have  at  least  equal  facil¬ 
ities,  with  the  roads  of  this  State  for  cheap 
transit  by  rail.  In  fact  both  Baltimore  and 
Philadelphia  have  cheaper  “rail  rates”  than 
New-York. 

THE  ST,  LAWRENCE  ROUTE. 

Our  rival  whom  we  must  watch,  and  have 
reason  to  fear,  is  to  be  found  in  a  Northern 
direction.  We  must  look  out  for  Montreal,  or 
rather  Quebec. 

The  latter  city  will  be  our  real  rival;  for 
why  should  a  lake  vessel  stop  short  of  a  sea¬ 
port.  The  St.  Lawrence  route  will  be  a 
serious  competitor  with  the  railroads  of  this 
State.  The  competition  we  are  now  meeting 
from  the  St.  Lawrence  route  is  only  from 
small  crafts,  and  is  of  no  importance. 

What  the  effect  will  be  when  its  canals  are 
enlarged  so  the  largest  vessels  can  pass 
through,  we  can  not  now  say.  Mr.  Elmore 
H.  Walker  in  his  last  report  to  the  New-York 
Produce  Exchange,  on  page  239,  speaks  of 
the  St.  Lawrence  route,  in  this  manner: 

“The  distance  from  Chicago  to  Montreal  via  the 
Lakes,  the  Welland  and  St.  Lawrence  canals,  is 
twelve  hundred  and  sixty  miles,  while  from  Chi¬ 
cago  to  New-York  via  the  Lakes,  Buffalo,  Erie 
Canal  and  Hudson  River,  it  is  fourteen  hundred 
miles,  a  difference  of  one  hundred  and  thirty-nine 
miles  in  favor  of  the  St.  Lawrence  route.  The  dis¬ 
tance  from  Montreal  to  Liverpool  via  Belle  Isle 
straits,  is  twenty-seven  hundred  and  ninety  miles, 
and  twenty-nine  hundred  miles  via  Cape  Race; 
against  three  thousand  and  forty  miles  from  New- 
York  to  Liverpool.  The  distance  from  Chicago  to 
Liverpool  via  Montreal  and  Straits  of  Belle  Isle, 
is  four  thousand  and  fifty-one  miles,  and  via  Mon¬ 
treal  and  Cape  Race,  four  thousand  two  hundred 
and  fifty  nine  miles,  against  four  thousand  four 
hundred  and  fifty  nine  miles  via  New-York;  dif¬ 
ference  in  favor  of  the  St.  Lawrence  route  of  two 
hundred  and  eight  or  four  hundred  and  eight  miles 
respectively. 

“  The  rates  of  freight  from  Chicago  to  Kingston 
in  1876  were  from  six  to  seven  and  a  half  cents  a 
bushel, with  additional  charges  of  three  to  three  and 
a  half  cents  for  the  barge  transportation  thence  to 
Montreal;  an  aggregate  of  nine  to  eleven  cents  a 
bushel,  equal  to  $6.00  to  $3.67  per  ton  from  Chicago  to 
Montreal.  The  rate  in  1877,  including  freight  from 
Chicago  to  Kingston,  and  barge  charges  of  three 
to  three  and  a  half  cents  a  bushel  from  the  latter 
place  to  Montreal,  was  $3.62  on  wheat,  and  $3.39  a 
ton  on  corn,  including  all  expenses. 

“  The  reduction  in  the  cost*  of  transportation  on 
the  lakes,  from  the  use  of  very  large  class  vessels, 
in  place  of  the  small  crafts  employed  in  1845,  is 
much  more  marked  than  the  reduction  on  the 
canals,  as  the  lake  vessels  of  the  largest  class  have 
fifteen  times  the  capacity  of  the  largest  vessel  in 
1845.  The  cost  now  from  Chicago  to  Buffalo  per 
ton  on  largest  vessels  is  about  a  half  a  mill  on  a 
ton  a  mile,  or  forty-five  cents  a  ton  for  a  distance  of 
nine  hundred  miles. 

“  The  vessels  now  navigating  the  lakes  and  pass¬ 
ing  through  the  Canadian  canals,  carry  from  sev¬ 
enteen  to  twenty  thousand  bushels  of  grain,  but 
on  the  completion  of  the  enlargement  of  the  canals, 
vessels  carrying  sixty  thousand  bushels  will  load 
at  Chicago  for  Kingston  or  Montreal  direct,  at 
about  one-third  of  the  present  cost  by  small  ves¬ 
sels. 

“  In  the  trip  to  Montreal  from  Chicago,  as  com¬ 
pared  by  water  through  New-York,  there  is  a  sav 


8 


ing  of  one  hundred  and  thirty-nine  miles  in  the 
distance,  and  two  hundred  and  seventy-eight  miles 
in  the  round  trip.  The  rates  from  Chicago  to  Mon¬ 
treal  during  the  last  and  the  previous  year,  were 
about  the  same  as  from  Chicago  to  New-York. 

“It  is  proposed  to  make  the  canals  free  to  com¬ 
merce,  charging  no  tolls  for  their  use.  This  would 
diminish  the  cost  sixty-nine  cents  a  ton,  but  this 
will  not  meet  the  reduction  in  cost  made  by  the 
use  of  vessels  on  the  St.  Lawrence  route  of  sixty 
thousand  bushels  carrying  capacity.” 

AYbatever  we  may  think  of  these  predic¬ 
tions  of  Mr.  Walker,  we  all  must  agree  that 
the  Erie  Canal  should  he  free  from  all  tolls, 
and  kept  in  the  best  condition  possible,  to 
enable  it  to  compete  successfully  with  the 
Northern  route,  when  the  Canadian  works 
are  fully  completed. 

For  when  the  enlargement  of  the  Welland 
and  St.  Lawrence  canals  Is  accomplished, 
there  is  very  serious  question  whether  the 
city  and  the  State  of  New- York,  can  retain* 
their  commerce  even  with  a  free  canal.  The 
natural  highway  from  the  lakes  to  the  Atlan¬ 
tic,  has  hitherto  been  found  to  be  through  our 
State,  along  the  line  of  the  Erie  Canal,  which 
equally  with  the  St.  Lawrence  route  is  an 
artificial  work.  If  this  channel,  hy  the  aid  of 
these  inland  seas,  does  not  forever  continue  to 
be  the  cheapest  route  from  the  far  West,  to 
the  seaboard,  let  it  not  be  because  the  State  of 
New- York  neglects  her  great  natural  advan¬ 
tages,  and  is  not  true  to  the  interests  of  her 
people. 

NEW  YORK’S  ADVANTAGES. 

The  physical  advantages  of  the  State  of 
New-York  are  so  well  expressed  by  Governor 
Seymour  in  his  speech,  delivered  Oct.  17th, 
1877,  at  the  laying  of  the  corner-stone  of  the 
monument  at  Saratoga,  that  you  will  have 
pleasure  in  bearing  his  interesting  and  in¬ 
structive  description.  He  said : 

“  Those  who  would  learn  the  causes  which  have 
shaped  the  course  of  military  and  political  affairs 
on  this  Continent,  which  have  given  victory  in 
war  and  prosperity  in  peace,  must  spread  out  be¬ 
fore  them  the  map  of  our  country. 

Having  traced  its  grand  system  of  mountains, 
rivers  and  lakes,  they  will  be  struck  with  the  fact 
that  for  a  thousand  miles  the  Alleghanies  make 
long  ranges  of  barriers  between  the  Atlantic  and 
the  great  plains  of  the  interior.  About  midway  of 
their  length  these  lofty  mountains  are  cut  down  to 
their  bases  by  the  gorge  of  the  Hudson,  through 
which  the  tides  of  the  ocean  pour  their  floods  in 
triumph.  Had  but  a  single  spur  of  those  rocky 
buttresses  which  crowd  upon  either  shore,  been 
thrown  across  the  narrow  chasm,  had  but  one  of 
the  beetling  cliffs  which  stand  upon  its  brink  been 
pushed  but  a  few  feet  across  its  course,  the  current 
of  events  would  have  been  changed  as  completely 
as  the  currents  of  the  floods.  The  nations  who 
control  the  outlets  of  the  Mississippi  and  St.  Law¬ 
rence  would  have  been  masters  of  the  Continent. 

No  one  who  has  marked  the  physical  character 
of  our  country,  and  who  has  studied  its  history, 
can  pass  through  the  highlands  of  the  Hudson  and 
note  how  at  every  turn  of  its  stream,  the  cliffs 
threaten  to  close  its  course,  without  feeling  that  the 
power  which  made  the  mountain  chains  to  stop 
abruptly  at  its  brink,  was  higher  than  blind 
chance  —  something  more  than  the  wild,  unrea¬ 
soning  action  of  convulsive  nature.  The  valley  of 
the  Hudson  does  not  end  where  it  has  led  the  Ocean 
tide  through  the  mountain  passes.  It  stretches  its 
channel  Northward  to  the  St.  Lawrence,  and  holds 
within  its  deep  basin  not  only  the  Hudson  flowing 
South,  but  Lake  Champlain,  which  empties  its 
waters  into  the  ocean  far  North  through  the  Gulf 
of  St.  Lawrence.  It  thus  not  only  connects  the 
harbor  of  New-York  with  the  basins  of  the  great 
lakes,  but  by  the  Mohawk  branch  of  the  Hudson, 
it  has  also  channeled  out  another  level  passage 
stretching  Westward  to  the  Plains,  watered  by  the 
confluents  of  the  Mississippi.  These  valleys  of  the 
Hudson  and  Mohawk  have  been  the  pathways  of 
armies  in  war  and  the  routes  of  commerce  in  peace. 

*  Consisting  of  Messrs.  David  A.  W < 


They  have  been  the  highways  through  which  the 
nations  of  Europe  and  the  people  of  the  Atlantic 
coasts, have  poiu*ed  their  hosts  of  emigrants  into  the 
vast  regions  which  stretch  out  from  the  Allegha¬ 
nies  to  the  base  of  the  Eockv  Mountains.” 

OUR  GRAND  COMMERCIAL  HIGHWAY. 

Our  ancestors,  led  by  the  prophetic  minds 
of  Forman,  Clinton,  Morris,  Hawley,  Geddes 
and  others,  saw  the  great  natural  advantages 
this  valley,  extending  from  the  East  to  the 
West,  through  our  State,  presented,  and  avail¬ 
ing  themselves  of  it,  united  the  waters  of  the 
lakes  with  the  ocean.  They  built  wiser  than 
they  knew.  It  is  now  the  most  important 
channel  for  transportation  in  the  United 
States,  its  commerce  is  vastly  more  than  that 
of  the  Mississippi  or  the  St.  Lawrence. 

When  we  contemplate  this  great  water 
route;  its  possibilities  in  the  future,  stretch¬ 
ing  to  the  far  West,  hy  the  Hudson,  the  Erie 
Canal,  and  the  Great*  Lakes,  a  distance  of 
nearly  fifteen  hundred  miles,  to  the  Western 
shores  of  Lake  Michigan,  thence  hy  canals 
and  rivers  through  the  States  of  Illinois  and 
Wisconsin  to  the  Mississippi  River;  and 
looking  still  further  North  from  the  Western 
end  of  Lake  Superior,  which,  by  a  work  to  be 
built  in  the  near  future,  consisting  of  canal, 
slack  water  and  river  improvements,  will  be 
connected  with  the  Red  River  of  the  North; 
thence  down  this  river  through  the  lakes  and 
up  the  rivers  of  the  British  possessions,  we 
see  an  internal  navigation  extending  from  the 
City  of  New-York,  not  only  to  the  Mississippi 
River,  but  also  nearly  to  the  Eastern  base  of 
the  Rocky  Mountains.  A  navigation  the  like 
of  which  does  not  exist  on  the  face  of  the  earth. 

When  we  consider  this  commercial  high¬ 
way,  extending,  as  it  does,  through  so  many 
States  of  this  Union,  connecting  these  great 
inland  seas  with  the  ocean;  this  short  link 
canal,  or  strait,  rises  to  national  importance. 
Such  a  channel  by  right  should  be  as  free  as 
the  lakes,  and  be  made  so  that  navigation  on 
it  can  be  as  cheap  as  on  a  river.  I  confidently 
believe  that  with  a  trifling  fraction  of  the 
expense  that  is  required  to  make  navigable 
the  Mississippi  or  the  St.  Lawrence,  the 
water  way  through  our  State  can  be  so  im¬ 
proved  that  navigation  on  it  can  be  done  so 
cheaply  that  it  will  be  utterly  impossible  for 
any  other  route  to  profitably  compete  with  it. 
What  visions  of  greatness  arise;  what  possi¬ 
bilities  are  in  the  future  for  our  State,  if  she  is 
only  true  to  her  own  interests.  I  believe  that 
the  Erie  Canal — great  and  important  a  work 
as  it  has  already  done — has  a  still  greater 
mission  in  the  future,  around  which  will 
circle  more  important  results  than  it  has  ever 
accomplished  in  the  past. 

In  conclusion,  let  me  say,  we  ought  to  ac¬ 
knowledge  the  services  rendered  the  public  by 
the  State  Canal  Commission.*  Their  valuable 
report  abounds  in  facts  relative  to  the  science 
of  transportation ;  a  science  not  as  well  under¬ 
stood  as  it  ought  to  be.  Among  other  inter¬ 
esting  statements,  we  are  told  that  the  most 
advanced  European  nations  manifest  renewed 
interest  in  their  canal  systems,  and  this  by 
nations  where  railroads  are  chiefly  owned  by 
the  State.  This  is  an  evidence  that  they,  like 
ourselves,  begin  to  see  that  the  water  courses 
are  superior  to  railroads  for  the  carriage  of 
bulky  raw  materials,  and  agricultural  pro¬ 
duce.  It  is  impossible  to  agree  to  some  of  the 
conclusions  of  the  Chairman  of  the  Commis¬ 
sion,  but  the  report  in  the  main  is  eminently 
satisfactory,  especially  that  portion  embraced 
in  the  appendix. 

s,  L.  J.  N.  Stark,  and  Wm.  Thurstone. 


3  0112  105220401 


